4 minBusiness
YouTube raises monetization entry bar for new creators starting February 2027
The platform will require 8,000 watch hours or 20 million Shorts views for ad and Premium revenue sharing, while current partners keep their YPP status.
YouTube will substantially increase the audience thresholds new creators must meet before they can share in advertising and YouTube Premium revenue. The changes take effect February 1, 2027, and leave the 1,000-subscriber requirement in place while doubling the two viewing-based paths into the YouTube Partner Program’s full revenue-sharing tier.
A new channel will need 1,000 subscribers plus 8,000 qualified watch hours during the previous 365 days, or 20 million qualified Shorts views during the previous 90 days. The current requirements, still displayed in YouTube’s Help Center in August 2026, are 1,000 subscribers and 4,000 watch hours or 10 million Shorts views.
YouTube says the higher entry standards will not apply retroactively to creators who already participate in YPP. Existing partners will remain in the program rather than being asked to clear the new viewing thresholds. They must, however, review and accept updated program terms in YouTube Studio by January 31, 2027, if they want to continue fully monetizing under the agreement that takes effect the next day.
The company is also changing how Shorts revenue sharing works once a creator is in the program. A channel will need to maintain 10 million qualified Shorts views over a 90-day period to receive advertising and subscription revenue attributable to Shorts. If the channel falls below that level, it remains in YPP and can continue earning from long-form videos. Shorts revenue sharing resumes once the channel reaches 10 million qualified views again.
Not every monetization threshold is increasing. YouTube’s expanded YPP, offered in eligible countries, includes an earlier tier for fan funding and selected Shopping features. Those requirements remain at 500 subscribers, three public uploads in the past 90 days, and either 3,000 qualified watch hours over the past year or 3 million qualified Shorts views over 90 days. The 8,000-hour and 20-million-view requirements apply to ad and Premium revenue sharing.
The update arrives alongside a wider rollout of Premium Lite, which YouTube says will expand to every country where YouTube Premium is available. The platform allocates portions of net subscription revenue into creator pools and distributes those pools according to viewing. Creators receive a 55 percent share for long-form content and 45 percent for Shorts after the relevant pool is distributed.
YouTube says more than 3 million creators now participate in YPP. It also reports more than 200 billion Shorts views per day and more than 1 billion hours of YouTube viewing on television screens each day. The company characterizes the new policies as the first significant changes to the program since 2018.
For prospective creators, the central effect is straightforward. Reaching 1,000 subscribers will still matter, but it will no longer put a channel nearly as close to full advertising eligibility as it does under today’s rules. The next phase will require a larger and more consistent record of audience attention, while smaller channels in supported markets will still have access to direct fan-funding tools at the lower expanded-YPP threshold.
